"IT was magic, magic all the way, not even Merlin the magician could have done any better" — the immortal words of legendary commentator Bill McLaren to laud a try by Llanelli's wing wizard Ieuan Evans that was recently voted Wales's best of all time.

1988 was the year as Evans stepped his way through a blur of Scottish defenders to bring the Arms Park crowd to its feet as one.

The Welsh fans, who had been brought up with stories of the majesty of Gerald and JJ racing down the flanks, now had their own West Wales speedster to hail.

The 'Carmarthen Cowboy' as he was known in his home town, was capped 72 times for Wales and captained his country on 28 occasions, leading Wales to a Five Nations Championship under the stewardship of Alan Davies in 1994.

In an era largely devoid of Welsh success stories, Evans raced in for a remarkable 33 tries — a record that has only recently been broken by Gareth Thomas and then a wing out of the same crowd-pleasing mould, Shane Williams.

Evans also etched his name into British Lions folklore with a series-winning try when he famously pounced on a loose pass by Aussie star David Campese on his own line in the crucial third Test against the Wallabies in 1989. The Scarlet icon was later picked for two further tours in New Zealand (1993) and South Africa (1997).

Evans had it all, devastating pace, a dazzling step, a great outside swerve and most crucially a radar for the whitewash.

Many others tries stand out down the years — his kick and chase under the nose of Rory Underwood to help Wales secure a memorable 10-9 victory in Cardiff in 1993 and a match-winner for Llanelli against the touring world champion Wallabies at a packed Stradey Park a year earlier.

You just wonder what he could have achieved had it not been for five shoulder dislocations and a horrific broken leg and dislocated ankle that threatened to end his career.

Evans was awarded the MBE for his services to rugby in 1996 and announced his retirement from the game three years later to take up various business ventures.

He is currently a respected commentator for Sky Sports.